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1/19/15

Rides 1/16: do I even remember?

Based on the true story of a Friday bike commute, the details about which I cannot mostly recall after a three day weekend. Names have been changed to protect the innocent.
Yeah, I've got nothing. I mean, these rides definitely happened on Friday, but only the faintest of details remain accessible. I remember locking my bike to a chain link fence, the u-lock tethering the fence to my rear rack in a most insecure manner. I remember tarrying at coffee, not really wanting to head into the office. I remember G Street at 23rd and trying to decide if I should move forward to allow the driver behind me to make a right turn at the red light or if I should continue to pretend not noticing he was there. I don't remember what I did. I remember riding up Wisconsin and seeing a store that had a silly name and that I thought about tweeting a dumb joke about that store's name and then declining because it wouldn't have been that funny, but not I can remember neither the name of the store (it sold furniture maybe?) nor the dumb joke I came up with. I remember how drivers (erstwhile drivers?) had parked their cars in the right lane even before the 9:30 AM time when that action would become legal. Do I remember something about a bus? I don't.

Remember: there was a Gear Prudence column last week. FUN FACT: I've been to Frederick but have never biked there. Maybe in the spring?

What do I forget from the ride home? I don't forget the route I took, which was the normal route down Massachusetts Avenue to 21st Street NW to L Street, but I do mostly forget how many other cyclists there were, thought I do recall that there were more than I expected. It's hard to forget how the many bicyclists and pedestrians had to squeeze between cars and buses, the drivers of which couldn't quite ensure that their vehicles didn't block the crosswalk and crosswalk-adjacent spaces that we all flooded into when the crosswalk white turned white. If you're going to walk or bike in the city, it's important to forget your dignity or any sense that your movement should be as unimpeded as those traveling in motor-powered vehicles. I would've forgotten that the White House plaza was closed, except that the inconvenience of riding down H and then down 15th really scars. It burrows deep, the inconvenience.

I've checked my phone. There seem to be no pictures from Friday worth remembering or forgetting. That's not to say there aren't any.

Tomorrow starts the week anew. I've got some new tires I'm quite happy about, but let's not despoil the memories of a future that haven't happened yet with predictions.